MULTI-CELL COMMUNICATION METHOD AND SYSTEM OF A MOBILE TERMINAL, A MICRO BASE STATION, AND A MACRO BASE STATION

• US 20110275378A1
• Filed: 01/10/2011
• Published: 11/10/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 05/10/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Jang, Kyung Hun, Shin, Chang Yong, Kwon, Tae Soo, Lim, Jong Bu
• Granted Patent: US 8,594,675 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/437
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/08 Reselecting an access point
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/32 by location or mobility data, e.g. speed data
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 64/003 locating network equipment
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/00 Local resource management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/08 Access point devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 92/20 between access points

Abstract

Communication methods of a macro base station which collects position information about a mobile micro base station and that is served by the macro base station, predicts a channel between the macro base station and the micro base station, and performs a handover between the macro base station and the micro base station based on a state of the predicted channel is provided.

Claims

1. A communication method of a macro base station, the communication method comprising:

collecting position information about a micro base station that is mobile and that is served by the macro base station;

predicting a channel between the macro base station and the micro base station using information stored in a channel prediction database that stores information about channels between the macro base station and the micro base station and the position information about the micro base station based on possible positions of the micro base station; and

transmitting and receiving data between the macro base station and the micro base station based on a state of the predicted channel.

2. The communication method of claim 1, wherein the predicting of the channel comprises:

predicting a traveling path of the micro base station using information stored in the channel prediction database; and

extracting the information about the channels between the macro base station and the micro base station based on the possible positions of the micro base station from the channel prediction database.

3. The communication method of claim 1, wherein the channel prediction database further stores at least one of information about a traveling path of the micro base station, information about geographical features of the surroundings of the micro base station based on the possible positions of the micro base station, information about possible traveling directions of the micro base station, and information about possible traveling speeds of the micro base station.

4. The communication method of claim 1, further comprising collecting information about the mobility of the micro base station, wherein the predicting of the channel further comprises predicting the channel based on the information about mobility of the micro base station.

5. The communication method of claim 1, wherein the micro base station comprises a femto base station or a moving relay and the micro base station is installed in a mobile vehicle.

6. The communication method of claim 1, wherein, in the transmitting and the receiving of the data, a beam is formed between the macro base station and the micro base station based on a strength of the channel or a direction of the channel.

7. The communication method of claim 1, wherein the transmitting and the receiving of the data comprises determining a level of an optimal modulation and coding scheme (MSC) or determining an allocation structure of an optimal wireless resource, based on a strength of the channel or a direction of the channel.

8. The communication method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining whether a traveling path of the micro base station is predictable; and

requesting feedback on information about the channel from the micro base station based on whether the traveling path of the micro base station is predictable.

9. The communication method of claim 1, wherein the predicting of the channel comprises predicting the channel without requesting feedback on information about the channel from the micro base station during a preset time period.

10. The communication method of claim 1, wherein the transmitting and the receiving of the data comprises performing collective link adaptation for a plurality of terminals in a zone that the micro base station exists in.

11. A communication method of a micro base station that is mobile, the communication method comprising:

collecting position information of the micro base station and reporting about the information to a macro base station;

predicting a channel between the macro base station and the micro base station using information stored in a channel prediction database that stores information about channels between the macro base station and the micro base station and the position information about the micro base station based on possible positions of the micro base station; and

transmitting and receiving data between the macro base station and the micro base station based on a state of the predicted channel.

12. The communication method of claim 11, wherein the predicting of the channel comprises:

predicting a traveling path of the micro base station using the information stored in the channel prediction database; and

extracting the information about the channels between the macro base station and the micro base station based on the possible positions of the micro base station using the channel prediction database.

13. The communication method of claim 11, further comprising reporting about the position information about the micro base station to a neighbor macro base station when additional association is needed between the neighbor macro base station and the micro base station.

14. The communication method of claim 13, further comprising:

selecting one macro base station from among the macro base station and the neighbor macro base station; and

transmitting data to the selected one macro base station so that the macro base station and the neighbor macro base station share the data.

15. The communication method of claim 11, wherein the channel prediction database further stores at least one of information about a traveling path of the micro base station, information about geographical features of surroundings of the micro base station based on the possible positions of the micro base station, information about possible traveling directions of the micro base station, and information about possible traveling speeds of the micro base station.

16. A communication method of a macro base station, the communication method comprising:

continuously maintaining a control channel between a terminal and the macro base station;

receiving a handover request message of the terminal through the control channel between the terminal and the macro base station; and

establishing a data channel between the terminal and the macro base station in response to the handover request message or transmitting data to a micro base station in a cell coverage of the macro base station.

17. The communication method of claim 16, wherein the continuously maintaining the control channel comprises continuously maintaining the control channel regardless of whether a target base station of a handover is the micro base station or the macro base station.

18. The communication method of claim 16, further comprising determining whether the terminal performs a handover with the micro base station or the macro base station based on the handover request message.

19. The communication method of claim 16, wherein the transmitting of the data to the micro base station comprises disconnecting the data channel between the macro base station and the terminal when a handover is performed to the micro base station of the macro base station and the micro base station.

20. The communication method of claim 16, wherein the continuously maintaining the control channel between the terminal and the macro base station comprises continuously maintaining the control channel between the terminal and the macro base station regardless of the terminal requesting a handover to be performed from the micro base station to another micro base station.

21. The communication method of claim 16, wherein the continuously maintaining the control channel station comprises continuously maintaining the control channel between the terminal and the macro base station until a control channel between the terminal and another macro base station is established.

22. A communication method of a terminal, the communication method comprising:

continuously maintaining a control channel between the terminal and a macro base station regardless of whether a target base station of a handover is a micro base station or the macro base station;

transmitting a handover request message of the terminal to the macro base station through the control channel between the terminal and the macro base station; and

establishing a data channel between the terminal and the macro base station or receiving data from the micro base station.

23. The communication method of claim 22, wherein the continuously maintaining the control channel comprises continuously maintaining the control channel between the terminal and the macro base station until a control channel between the terminal and another macro base station is established.

24. The communication method of claim 22, wherein the receiving of the data from the micro base station comprises establishing a data channel between the micro base station and the terminal while the control channel between the terminal and the macro base station is continuously maintained and when the micro base station is the target base station.

25. A computer-readable storage medium having stored therein program instructions to cause a processor to implement a communication method of a macro base station, the communication method comprising:

collecting position information about a micro base station that is mobile and that is served by the macro base station;

predicting a channel between the macro base station and the micro base station using information stored in a channel prediction database that stores information about channels between the macro base station and the micro base station and the position information about the micro base station based on possible positions of the micro base station; and

transmitting and receiving data between the macro base station and the micro base station based on a state of the predicted channel.